Preview: Choctawhatchee Indians vs. Escambia Gators
The Choctawhatchee Indians will head out on the road to take on the Escambia Gators at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Both teams come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Choctawhatchee has not done well against West Florida recently (they were 1-8 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Tuesday. Choctawhatchee won by a run and slipped past West Florida 8-7. The victory made it back-to-back wins for Choctawhatchee.
Choctawhatchee got a great performance from Carson Appleton as he didn't allow a single earned run over five innings pitched. Appleton has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, Jack Phan was incredible, scoring a run while going 3-for-4. Another player making a difference was Jordan Figueroa, who scored a run and stole a base while going 3-for-3.
Meanwhile, Escambia had already won five in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 4.6 runs), and they went ahead and made it six on Thursday. They were the clear victor by a 15-5 margin over the Wildcats. 15 seems to be a good number for Escambia as the team scooped up a victory with the same number of runs in their previous game.
Christian Stone and Clayton Sanders made a splash no matter where they played. On the mound, Stone pitched 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Meanwhile, Sanders tossed three innings while giving up just two earned runs off four hits (he also didn't allow any walks). At the plate, Stone scored four runs while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances, while Sanders scored two runs while going 3-for-5.
In other batting news, Caleb Bates was incredible, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-3. The team also got some help courtesy of Tucker Nix, who went 2-for-3 with four RBI and a run.
Choctawhatchee's record is now 3-6. As for Escambia, their record now sits at 8-2.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Wednesday as both teams have some strikeout artists on the roster. Choctawhatchee has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.1 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Escambia struggles in that department as they've been averaging 9.5 per game. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Choctawhatchee came out on top in a nail-biter against Escambia in their previous meeting back in April of 2023, sneaking past 5-4. The rematch might be a little tougher for Choctawhatchee since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
